Port Charlotte: Jewel of the Harbor

Port Charlotte is the shining jewel of Charlotte Harbor!

Like so many of our Florida Gulf Coast communities, Port Charlotte was home to ancient Indians and conquering Spaniards in the 1500’s, only to be all but forgotten until after World War II, when it was discovered by land developers and became a planned community in the 1950’s.

In Port Charlotte’s case, the land developers were Florida’s Famous Mackle Brothers, instructed by their father to diversify their wildly successful home building business on the east coast and establish a gulf side community. Frank Jr, Robert & Elliot utilized their partnership with the Canadian Yellowknife Bear Mines, LTD, to take over 80,000 acres of cattle and timber land formerly held by Arthur Frizzell.

In 1956, the brothers set up the General Development (GD) Corporation, laid out 25,000 lots and began selling them to people across the country for $10 down, $10 a month, or $600 cash outright. Port Charlotte took its name from the harbor, which an English mapmaker had renamed for King George III’s wife when surveying the land they, uh, acquired the land from the Spanish missionaries.

Homes from the Mackle brothers cost anywhere from $6000-$18,000, and 4 model homes were built on the newly coined Easy Street – the longest road in town. Within the first couple of years, more than 1000 homes were sold, and between 10 and 100 times that many lots (depending on who you ask). Per Florida law, every street had to be named so that the investors could locate their property, so everyone in the corporation offered suggestions, one being the name of the newspaper that had brought in the most sales from GD advertisements – the Toledo Blade.

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The Mackle brothers and GD would go on to build 6 more planned communities before declaring bankruptcy and reopening as The Deltona Corporation in 1962. But by then, Port Charlotte had gained almost 4,000 residents, and would double and quadruple those numbers in the next 2 decades. And while politics and the Mackle bankruptcy scandal prevented the development from incorporating, Port Charlotte had established itself as the largest community in Charlotte County.

Today, Port Charlotte boasts just under 60,000 residents, 7 golf courses, 165 miles of waterways, the highest rated public schools in the state and host the Tampa Bay Rays for spring training in the Charlotte Sports Park. Some of Port Charlotte’s historic buildings were taken out by Hurricane Charley in 2009, including the drive-in theater. Tippecanoe Environmental Park in Port Charlotte offers hiking trails and wildlife viewing through 380 acres of scrub and pine flat-woods. Port Charlotte is ranked by Golf Digest as the "Third Best Place to Live and Play Golf in America."

The Industry Leader in Green Pest Solutions

Good News leads the industry in providing 100% all natural, safer and more effective botanically-based Eco Superior products for pest control. Products that are guaranteed safe for you, your children and your pets. That, coupled with other products that utilize naturally occurring elements found in nature, allows Good News to provide the same pest-free living guarantee, with no risk to your health.

A recent EPA study suggests that 80% of pesticide exposure occurs indoors and that measurable levels of up to a dozen pesticides have been found in the air inside homes!

GO GREEN plus 3 – All Natural Protection

Our Go Green plus 3 pest control service is designed to eliminate and prevent most of the creepy-crawly insect varieties we see in Florida, including ants, roaches, silverfish and, of course, spiders. We schedule 3 visits per year to provide exterior service after the initial set-up.

Your Good News technician will inspect the entire exterior of your property while sweeping cobwebs from the eaves and windows. Once the source of insects is determined, a proper treatment of the perimeter foundation, entry points, eaves, plant beds and trees will be applied where needed using reduced–risk, green products.

If you are having any pest issues inside, your trained tech will also treat any entry points, kitchen, baths, laundry room, or problem areas using reduced–risk or even pesticide exempt products. We guarantee your satisfaction and will return (at no charge) in between scheduled visits if you encounter any pests. Please call as soon as you see a problem. The sooner we inspect and treat, the better.

T·A·P™: Thermal Acoustical Pest Control

With T·A·P™, you not only keep out the bugs, but you can save money on your cooling (and heating) bills! Like all our products, TAP is all natural and safe for your family and pets, but is 32% more energy efficient than fiberglass insulation, while adding a sound barrier and even reducing fire hazard.

Termites – the Dinner Guest You Don’t Want

Our tropical Florida environment means that the state also has the highest risk for termite problems. Termites do more damage than floods, fires and storms combined, and like those natural disasters, the more you prepare the less you feel the impact. Good News is the leader in using natural, organic, and essential oil alternatives to control both Drywood and Subterranean termite pests. We even offer a 1-Million Dollar Damage Repair Warranty for homes that qualify.

We also offer Bora-Care®, an organic pre-construction treatment and real estate WDO inspections prior to buying a home, to insure it is free of wood destroying organisms.

Don’t wait, schedule your termite inspection now.

>>>For a limited time, Charlotte County residents get $40 off their inspection for mentioning this website!

Keeping the Rodents in the Fields

One issue we see with rapidly growing and developing areas, is that rats, mice and other rodents find themselves ‘homeless,’ and decide to move in to your home—even in the most exclusive homes and neighborhoods.

The Good News Premiere Rodent program is the most comprehensive service available. We start by excluding all known entry points and sealing roof vents with proprietary covers. Then, we set several traps in the attic(s) to kill any rodents sealed in. Next, we install 4-6 of the best bait stations available in hidden locations around the exterior perimeter. These help to keep the outside population of rodents to a minimum. We check the traps twice per week until we are sure there are no more live rodents inside.

Next, we vacuum droppings and apply a deodorizer, sanitizer, viruscide to the entire attic space. Many of our customers are finalizing the process by capping their insulation with T·A·P™. Once T·A·P™ is installed, the attic looks brand new and acts as a deterrent to re-infestation.

Quick Facts About Port Charlotte:

We have 2 Baseball teams! Port Charlotte's own Charlotte Stone Crabs in the Florida State League, and the GCL Rays, the Tampa Bay Rays farm team!

NFL Kicker John Hall, formerly with the Redskins and the Jets, is from Port Charlotte.

Matt LaPorta, from the 2008 US Olympic Baseball Team calls Port Charlotte home.

Before playing in the Super Bowl with the New Orleans Saints, Anthony Hargrove played for the Port Charlotte High School Pirates.